Habitualchaos

I will go for a bike ride this week. I will go for a bike ride this week. I will go for a bike ride this week. I will go for a bike ride this week. I will go for a bike ride this week. I will go for a bike ride this week. I will go for a bike ride this week. I will go for a bike ride this week. I will go for a bike ride this week. I will go for a bike ride this week. I will go for a bike ride this week. I will go for a bike ride this week. I will go for a bike ride this week. I will go for a bike ride this week. I will go for a bike ride this week.

Ive been trying to think of something to say to this license plate my bud Marc pointed out to me leaving lunch at Rocknes last week... but for the life of me, I still cant think of anything?!

I was very tempted to walk back inside and find the person who asked for this plate at the DMV, but I thought about it and was content with simply leaving; asking myself what the fuck it means?!

No one, more than me, regretted cracking/breaking my tailbone months and months ago on a mountain bike ride through the woods. As common knowledge stands, tailbone injuries suck ass (no pun intended) and hurt the part too... not too mention theres not a lot you can do about them other than grin and bear it.

It was excruciating for a while... having to squirm a little in a seat to find a non-stinging position, walking like I belonged in Monty Pythons Ministry of Silly Walks and having to squirm just as much to find a non-stinging position to sleep in. I was relieved after several weeks, the pain began to go away and I stop walking around like I had to pee.

That was prolly half a hear ago, and regrettably for some unknown reason... the pain has returned. It sucks, it really sucks... but as I mentioned, theres not much to do but walk around and bear it. If I did anything to aggrevate the first injury... I couldnt tell you what it was. Even the bike ride I went on, with my best friend John on Saturday (just like I said I was gonna ride this week) didnt bother my tailbone at all. Its got a mind of its own it seems... and just enjoys biting me here and there to remind me of my stupidity months and months ago.

Ive been looking into a single health insurance plan for myself, so I can have that and some other things checked out... since my temporary employer didnt include benefits in our deal. Hopefully I can get some good news... no matter what degree, once I decide on a deal for myself that is.

In other news: the full redesign of my little haven of sarcasm and personal embarassment is on temporary hold.

Lately Ive been on a mission to assist myself in the learning process (to go along with my research into going back to school) by diving my face into some books. The two that are on my plate now: HTML for the World Wide Web with XHTML and CSS: Visual QuickStart Guide , Fifth Edition and Designing with web standards, by Jeffrey Zeldman (when it comes out) will help me with carrying my new site design into some fresher waters.

So until Im done with them, Im just gonna put up a temporary placeholder design sometime soon; as Ive been growing increasingly weary of the current one.

Course, by the time I get the placeholder design up and running... I might be done with both books.

Just getting back from a wild and losta-fun visit to 6 Flags Ohio a couple hours ago reminded me of a humorous story highlighting my adventures a long time ago to Cedar Point. Allow me to share this story...

Im not even sure of the year of this visit, although it wasnt more than 5 or 6 years ago. I was with a buddy of mine, his girlfriend and a friend of hers, whos name was Mindy. We got up there relatively early and had also brought some food we kept in a cooler in the car... cause food prices were (and still are) pretty hefty. Did all our little situating, and making sure we had what we needed... we got everything together to go, and Mindy decided to put a little skin lotion on before we went in. Common occurence, so you wouldnt normally think twice about it.

The day went as you would expect being at a theme/amusement park. Losta walking, riding coasters and stuff and an occasional Lemon Shake (which still to this day I love). Towards the middle of the day, we decided to try our luck with one of the parks water rides... a beast called Thunder Canyon. For those who dont know, the official desciption according to the website: This 1,600-foot white-water rafting ride spins riders through winding, churning rapids. Waterfalls and rocky canyon walls give this ride a rugged flavor. Or you could always go here to see it for yourself.

The seating arrangement at the time, was my buddys girlfriend, him, me then Mindy. About halfway through the ride, after getting nailed by a waterfall... I look around where Im sitting to see little bubbles popping up and a slight lather building everywhere. These bubbles + lather were obviously not part of the ride, although the ride caused them... my first thought (of course) is "what the fuck is going on here?" We come to realize that these bubbles + stuff are coming from Mindys direction.

After getting off the ride, and in the midst of laughing hysterically... Mindy realizes that it wasnt skin lotion she put on when we got to the park, it was a lotion-soap she mistakenly picked up. We were in such a hurry to get in the park... she didnt even read the label on the bottle and rubbed soap all over herself thinking it was a regular moisturizer.

That laughing hysterically lasted a good long time after that realization, and sufficed to say Mindy didnt live that one down for months afterwards. I still keep in touch with the buddy I went to park with, I talk to him regularly. Enough time has passed since that day, we dont even think about it really.

I think the reason I remembered it now, was just recently I visited him after he had time to unpack stuff at his recently-purchase house... and Mindys picture adorned their wall in the living room. That, and todays trip to 6 Flags, got the ol' hamster running to remember the day I took an impromtu bath at Cedar Point: Americas Roller Coast.

Please allow me to unveil the first ever series of photographs Ive taken with my new (well relatively new) Coolpix 4500.

Actually, I think this is the first actual series of photos Ive ever taken as embarassing as that is to admit... especially as much I like doing a little photography here and there.

First: My original intentions today/tonight was to work on a little mini-site (if you can even call it that) highlighting my visit to 6 Flags this past Sunday. Other things and a little laziness tonight prevented that. Just a couple videos, and not really enough pictures to call it a picturejournal... Im actually planning on working on it tomorrow to get it out of they way.

Now: One of the guys I work with was getting a real kick outta the resemblence I had to the lowercase b in a font called Heads of the Household by House Industries.

The font basically consists of just a bunch of cartoonish faces, and it just so happened theres one in there that looks like me. He liked it so much, he made it the icon of a folder I have on his computer with my work files in it.

I was just sitting here, just getting back from my lunchbreak, and I happened upon this article about a woman claiming Michael Jacksons bodyguards (and possibly Jackson himself) attacked her after she tried to snap a few pics of him in a hotel lobby.

I have to admit though, that I wasnt paying that much attention to the article... when I had this picture staring at me from the screen.

Looking at that picture, two things pop into my head... and neither involve anything related to the article itself in any way. 1st thought: God, does he resembles more of a creature from the Jeepers Creepers sequel than he does any human Ive ever met. 2nd thought: EWW!

As Ive been sitting here for a little while, doing work on that little mini-site for my recent trip to 6 Flags... I decided there really wasnt enough to do the mini-site I had planned. Or at least, there wasnt enough to keep me focused on doing it all in Flash MX... I found I could get it done faster if I just did it like this.

So here are the few pics I have, and theyre not pics of the full day... just stuff that caught my/our attention throughout the day. I got two new videos for you too, right up where they normally are:

Im not sure which parts of Joe they shaved to offer it at the park, but I wasnt bold enough to ask.

Marc got a real kick outta the fact 6 Flags made such a "big deal" that the pop machines were "reduced" to $2... made us wonder what they were before.

After talking to him for a little bit... none of us would argue that was, in fact, a swell shark.

We all coudnt do any more but feel bad for whatever time of day it was this man had to be "eated"

There you have it... that would have been the contents of my mini-site for the 6 Flags trip. I feel better getting it out of the way... since it was a good time, and Im glad I could share at least some of it.

<serious-note> Its more or less official, all thats left is the specific paperwork. Upon the start of the Fall Semester of my alma mater... I will, once again, be wandering the halls of the school; although in a different department. Ive decided to take a different approach to that looming question mark that seems to be my career... and decided to extand upon the knowledge I already have as a web designer.

Youngstown State University has introduced a new program called Web Communications, thats focuses on the the more database and/or programming aspects of the web design community... and its something I feel I would be a better web designer if I knew.

Something that has had this decision a little hard to focus on... is that it was only offered as a Bachelors Degree, there wasnt an Associates available. On a visit to the department a little while back, to just ask about some written information about the program... I was briefly told about a certificate program that was being voted on in the Academic Senate that split the program up into seperate certificates than a full degree.

This sounded perfect for me, as I was very uninterested in going back to school for another full Bachelors Degree... the one I have in graphic design is enough for me. Two of their certificates really interest me, with a possible 3rd that I might be interested in.

Im not sure how I feel about this. I genuinely feel that any extra education I get will be beneficial to me... especially since I want to do this to give myself a little more confidence in what I do. Im just nervous, is all.

I definitely couldnt do this if I wasnt at home for the moment... but I gotta wonder if these certificates are worth how much longer I'll have to stay here to get them. As much as I do wanna get back out on my own... I could certainly focus more on this new school thing if I was here.

Actually, I am gonna stop with this wheres-my-life-going rhetoric. I was watching the news today about the jobless status in the US today... and saw a report about a guy who formerly designed computer systems, that has applied to over 3000 companies and is working as a ticket cashier at a local movie theater. The report ended telling how he has to move his family out of their house, cause the bank is foreclosing in October.

Seeing a report like that certainly gives me a sick feeling, when I think of the hard time Ive been going through... I cant imagine being in that mans shoes. Im one of the lucky ones when compared to him and it makes me sick to think Ive been feeling so sorry for myself... seeing what that mans going through.

Im going back to school... whether its the right move or not, Im doing it. Lets just leave it at that. </serious-note>

I almost forgot about this story... flipping through the pics still left on my camera reminded me I still needed to tell you all about it.

A few weeks ago, myself and my buds Marc + Devon went to Buffalo Wild Wings for lunch. After we were done eating, I decided to be a rebel and go for an Oreo brownie for dessert.

I walked up to the counter, and told the girl at the register that I wanted one of those Oreo brownies on the wall. She rung it up and I gave her some cash, and she gave me a receipt... but no brownie. I asked her about it she said theyd have one sent out from the back. I looked at her, and asked her (nicely) if I could just have one of those ones right there on the wall? She replied that they (Im assuming the management) liked to have them presented a little nicer.

I figured if they went to all that trouble... they would take it out of the wrapper, put it into one of their paper trays and warm it up or something. Just a little something to make it worth not just handing me a brownie off the wall. You have thought that anyway...

No more than 10-15 seconds after I walked away from the counter... a waitress came by and set this on our table. Instead of just turning around, grabbing one of the brownies right there and handing it to me... she turned around and grabbed one, went to the back, dropped it onto a paper basket and brought it out.

I just sat there and looked at it for a second... right before me, Marc + Dev all just busted out laughing. This went on for a good couple minutes... all of us just looking at this extra-special brownie and laughing almost hysterically.

When I was walking back to the table after paying for my brownie... I thought theres no way theyd just do what they ended up doing. I even had the thought they were gonna do exactly what they did. im not even conveying here how genuinely funny this moment was... tt was just one of those good moments in life that you have to laugh at the shear absurdity.

Yesterday, I bid farewell to my best friend.

If not by now, very shortly he will be on his way to Sacremento California... to begin his new career later this month as an assistant professor at California State University.

It wasnt an overly-emotional goodbye, as in this day and age of technology... I can essentially talk to him every day through various means. Its just that looming realization that he wont be here that has started settling in. Even though we didnt hang out on a regular basis... it was comforting to know he was only 1.5 hours away, as opposed the 72-96 hours away he'll be soon.

Hes one of those friends, the ones who are actually an important piece of you... one of only 3 people I completely trust in this world, one of only 3 people I feel comfortable enough with to literally tell anything to. I havent known him all my life, quite honestly its been just over a decade Ive known him... but hes made the most impact on me of anyone, a constant source of both frustration and inspiration.

Im not writing this as a goodbye forever, or some sappy Michael Bolton-worthy remake of a heartachey song... this is simply to try to say how much I'll miss him not being here, and how much Im looking forward to taking the steps to joining him out there someday.

Good luck to you John... kick some ass till I get there.

I was gonna write a new post about this juice drink I got at a local Wal-Greens and make sarcastic remarks about it... but that was before my mom called me earlier (say 3:00) and said she wasnt feeling good, and suggested I be responsible for dinner tonight.

So... you just have to wait till tomorrow.

Now onto the before mentioned "postponed post" I should have written yesterday... but didnt cause Im a bastard.

A few weeks ago, I stopped at a local Walgreens to pick up just a quick snack and a drink, cause Id been going around to local stores looking for desktop tripods.

I just grabbed some Almond M&Ms and a new little fruit drink I noticed while browsing through. Had never heard of it (even though I cant remember its name now), sounded good and Im always a sucker for trying new drinks and such... so I grabbed the Orange/Dragonfruit variety, paid and left.

Went on my way home, munching on some M&Ms and taking the occasional swig of my Orange/Dragonfruit flavored drink. When I got home, I was of course finished with both my snack and my drink... so I was planning on just tossing them in the garbage cans as I walked by them into the house.

Something just prompted me to look at the back of the drink bottle, just to glance at the nutritional facts... cause I have to be careful not to ruin my girlish figure. Something struck me as a little odd about what I read.

First thing I noticed was the 10% Apple + Pear juice statement above the nutritional facts. Although I thought it was a little strange, I (at first) didnt think much of it... as theres always hints of other juices used in all sorts of fruit drinks. Just noticing that, I glanced over at the ingredients (just out of curiosity)... and didnt find any mention of oranges or dragonfruits, even in the ingredients.

After reading that, I tried to think back to when I was enjoying my beverage on the way home... and couldnt remember if Id caught that there wasnt much a taste of oranges (since I dont know what dragonfruit exactly tastes like) in my drink. Must not have been very noticeable... as I couldnt remember if I caught it or not.

Its all for the best anyway. Cause the last thing Id want in a Orange/Dragonfruit flavored juice drink... is the taste of either Oranges or Dragonfruit (whatever that tastes like).